THE BOURSE WHISPERER: Rox Resources (ASX: RXL) informed the market that plaint brought by Baracus Pty Ltd over one of the tenements comprising the Collurabbie project has been dismissed.

Rox Resources said the decision allows the 100 per cent acquisition of the project tenements to proceed.

Rox will pay a purchase price of $25,000 cash and issue 7.5 million shares in Rox to Robo 3D Limited (ASX: RBO) (previously Falcon Minerals Limited).

The Collurabbie project is located 500 kilometres north of Kalgoorlie in Western Australia and 70km due east of Rox’s Fisher East nickel sulphide and Mt Fisher gold projects.

Rox has applied for adjoining tenement areas covering approximately 105 square kilometres, giving a total project area of around 168sqkm.

In addition to the Olympia Prospect, the Project hosts other prospects including Agora, Leros, Paros and Rhodes (East and West), where exploration by previous owners identified mineralisation.

Much of this exploration activity has not been followed up with the project area undergoing sporadic exploration, with a concentrated effort from 2004-2005 and moderate activity from 2010-2011, but no exploration of substance since 2011.

“We plan to apply the same successful exploration techniques at Collurabbie that we have used at Fisher East,” Rox Resources managing director Ian Mulholland said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“With the last phase of exploration being some five to six years ago, there is considerable scope for new discoveries.”

Rox indicated that the majority of previous work at Collurabbie has consisted deep RC and diamond drilling at the Olympia prospect, with only broadly spaced drilling outside of that prospect area.

The company considers any regional coverage conducted up until now, albeit with effective geochemistry, to have been poor, and that a concise exploration program presents a further opportunity.

Email: info@roxresources.com.au

Website: www.roxresources.com.au

THE BOURSE WHISPERER: Lithium Australia has signed a Joint Venture with Tin International AG, a subsidiary of Deutsche Rohstoff AG (ETR: DR0).

Lithium Australia explained the two entities completed due diligence – LIT on the Sadisdorf project TIN International on the Sileach process.

Lithium Australia said the Joint Venture will initially focus on the Sadisdorf project which is located in the Erzgebirge (Ore Mountains) of Saxony in Germany, an area with a long history of tin mining dating back to the Middle Ages.

Under the terms of the JV, Tin International receives a one-time cash payment of EUR 50,000 and 1,723,806 Lithium Australia shares.

Lithium Australia can earn a 15 per cent interest in the Joint Venture by spending EUR 750,000 in exploration on Sadisdorf until 30 June 2018 or the company can elect to pay the outstanding amount in cash to Tin International.

A further 35 per cent interest (for a total 50% interest) can be earned by spending an additional EUR 1.25 million in exploration until May 2020.

Lithium Australia explained its interest in the historic Sadisdorf tin mine stems from the presence of pervasive greisens which are known to contain abundant lithium mineralisation in the form of zinnwaldite, a lithium mica the company considers to be ideally suited to processing with its 100 per cent-owned Sileach process.

The Joint Venture’s initial aims are to extend and upgrade the existing Sadisdorf JORC (2012) resource of 3.36 million tonnes inferred resource grading 0.44 per cent tin at a cutoff of 0.25 per cent tin by the addition of lithium data to quantify a poly metallic Resource.

TIN and LIT intend to expand that resource by further drilling in the first year of the Joint Venture.

The tin orebody is thought to contain the order of 15 per cent zinnwaldite, which the JV believes to be a prime target for supply of lithium into the European battery industry.

“Lithium Australia believes that developing strong European partnerships will be greatly support longer term efforts to supply the European market,” Lithium Australia managing director Adrian Griffin said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“Developing a lithium project the calibre of Sadisdorf not only achieves that goal, but also adds to the global lithium mica inventory being accumulated by Lithium Australia.”

Email: info@lithium-au.com

Website: www.lithium-au.com

THE BOURSE WHISPERER: Lithium Australia (ASX: LIT) announced its trademarked Sileach process has produced battery grade lithium carbonate from spodumene concentrates sourced from Pilbara Minerals’ (ASX: PLS) Pilgangoora deposit.

Lithium Australia said operations undertaken at ANSTO Minerals (a division of the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation) demonstrated proof-of-concept production of high-purity lithium carbonate from spodumene process solutions.

The lithium carbonate feed solutions were produced by Lithium Australia’s Sileach pilot plant, processing of Pilgangoora spodumene concentrates.

LIT explained the concentrate grades processed were intentionally selected to have a grade lower than commercial concentrate grades, in this case 3.4 per cent lithium oxide (Li2O) to demonstrate the flexibility of Sileach in processing a wide range of materials, including off-specification spodumene concentrates.

The solutions generated by digesting spodumene contain approximately 2.4 per cent silicon, 1.2 per cent aluminium and 0.2 per cent lithium.

Lithium Australia said the concentrations achieved provide an opportunity to recover components, other than lithium, as by-products that is not available with conventional processing.

“The ability of Sileach to cope with the high levels of contamination in the spodumene concentrate, and still produce a high-purity lithium carbonate is a great achievement,” Lithium Australia managing director Adrian Griffin said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“The ability to produce by-products that are not available with conventional processing of spodumene shows great potential.”

Email: info@lithium-au.com

Website: www.lithium-au.com

THE BOURSE WHISPERER: Days before Blackham Resources (ASX: BLK) is due to present at the RIU Resources Roundup in Sydney, the company has announced the completion of a Preliminary Expansion Study on its 100 per cent-owned Matilda/Wiluna gold operation in Western Australia.

Blackham Resources explained the Preliminary Expansion Study assumes a staged expansion which would give the company flexibility to treat both oxide and sulphide ores.

It also provides a lower risk staged approach to development and capex over an 18 month period ramping up gold production to over 200,000 ounces per annum.

The Preliminary Expansion Study focused on the Wiluna Sulphides to assess it independently and as part of an integrated operation with the current free milling ores at Matilda and Wiluna.

It has been assumed the expanded operation would be developed in two Stages 2A and 2B.

On the completion of Stage 2B , Blackham envisages the treatment of free milling ore would recommence allowing the two processing facilities to run in parallel with total capacity of 3.2 million tonnes per annum.

It also allows the company to finance the expansion out of a combination of Stage 1 cash flow and a debt re-sizing.

Preliminary Expansion Study highlights, include:

Targeted Gold Production over nine years of 18 million tonnes at 2.7 grams per tonne gold for 1.31 million ounces of gold;

Open Pit Mining Inventory of 14 million tonnes at 2g/t gold for 890,000 ounces of gold;

Underground Mining Inventory of 4 million tonnes at 4.9g/t gold for 630,000 ounces of gold;

Stage 2A Capital costs of $24.9 million for circa 0.75 million tonnes per annum;

Stage 2B combined processing capacity of 3.2 million tonnes per annum for +200,000 ounces per annum; and

Life Of Mine – all in sustaining costs of 1,170 per ounce or US$870 per ounce.

“The Wiluna Expansion Plan aims to achieve a step change in gold production from the 6.4 million ounce resource at the Matilda/Wiluna operation,” Blackham Resources managing director Bryan Dixon said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“The Preliminary Expansion Study has confirmed gold production of 200,000 ounces per annu is achievable on a very capital efficient basis and is likely to be a long mine life.

“By undertaking a staged development approach the company expects to maintain a strong balance sheet during stage 2A refurbishment and construction plus on the completion of Stage 2B run the sulphide and oxide circuits in parallel providing one of Western Australian’s most flexible gold processing facilities.”

Email: info@blackhamresources.com.au

Website: www.blackhamresources.com.au

THE BOURSE WHISPERER: Australian Potash (ASX: APC) received all necessary approvals from the Department of Mines and Petroleum, the Department of Water and the Department of Environment Regulation for development of pilot evaporation ponds at the company’s 100 per cent-owned Lake Wells potash project in Western Australia.

Australian Potash indicated it will commence an on-site, pilot evaporation pond program to produce the first sample of Sulphate of Potash (SOP) from the Lake Wells project.

The company’s potash consultants, Novopro, are coordinating the test-work program to optimise the process design.

Production of the bulk samples of potash salts from the pilot evaporation pond program are expected to provide site specific factors to further the optimisation of the process design, and lead to the production of the first SOP sample product from the project.

Australian Potash said the construction of the evaporation pond is scheduled to commence in May, adding the pilot pond program will build on pan evaporation trials it has had underway for several months.

This information will combine with site climate data generated through a permanent 24/7 weather station the company installed to build its overall understanding of the evaporative environment at Lake Wells.

“We enjoy a very constructive dialogue with the regulatory bodies overseeing mining in Western Australia,” Australian Potash executive chairman Matt Shackleton said in the company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange.

“It is pleasing to receive a key regulatory permit for the Lake Wells potash project, demonstrating the APC team’s commitment to delivering a project to create value for all stakeholders as the permitting process progresses in lockstep with project work streams.

“The APC team is focused on the delivery of a high returning project at Lake Wells to capitalise on the strong fundamental outlook for high quality SOP production within close proximity to transport logistics for domestic and export markets.”

Website: www.australianpotash.com.au